


No Obligation

by shinyopals



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: During Canon, Gen, Jane Foster Loves Science, Minor Jane Foster/Thor, POV Jane Foster, Thor Is Not Stupid, Thor: The Dark World
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-02
Updated: 2015-02-02
Packaged: 2018-03-10 00:35:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3270164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shinyopals/pseuds/shinyopals
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jane has enough on her plate trying to help prevent the end of the world with science. What she really <i>doesn't</i> need is to overhear Erik and Thor talking about her. (During TDW.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	No Obligation

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks very much to [Niobium](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Niobium/) for the beta!

' _Mumble mumble mumble_ Jane _mumble mumble._ '

Overhearing her name, Jane's ears perked up and she frowned at the distraction. The Convergence and the end of the world were in just over two hours and unless she could get these damn spikes working, Thor would be facing Malekith without help.

What she didn't need was the sudden knowledge that Erik was talking about her to Thor.

Erik had been doing so well, too. He'd put on his pants and revised his calculations to give them a time estimate for the height of of the Convergence. Thor had nodded and said that simply distracting or removing Malekith at the critical time would be enough.

'The Convergence is at its peak for mere moments,' he'd said. 'The Dark Elves will not arrive long before that time, or else they'll lose any hope of surprise. I must be there to meet them.'

'You're not fighting all of them alone!' Jane had said. 'What if they've got more soldiers like that guy who was beating you up?'

'It will be unwise,' he'd admitted with a tight smile. 'But I confess I see little other course. Heimdall does not answer my calls and I am reluctant to contact the organisation SHIELD. Their strategy in New York risked too many lives.'

'I've got a plan,' Jane had said.

'Oh boy,' had been Darcy's response. The looks on Erik and Ian's face had mirrored hers.

Thor had looked down at Jane and listened – really listened – as she'd outlined what she could do with Erik's gravometric spikes and how in theory a fairly simple (for her own definition of 'simple') phase reversal would, instead of cancelling out the effects of the Convergence, increase them, and how they could use that as another weapon.

When she'd finished explaining, all he'd asked was if there was anything he could do to help. When she'd said no, he'd left her to it and gone to the kitchen to prepare himself some food, saying he needed his strength. She'd sent Darcy and Ian out on a mission to buy duct tape, wires and solder; and Erik had settled down to help her work, right up until she'd pulled up some data on the Tesseract. At that point he'd retreated, face going pale. Jane had forced a sympathetic smile – she did understand but it wasn't exactly convenient – before getting back to her work.

And now Erik was talking about her with Thor. She wondered if they realised the door had been left open a crack.

' _Mumble_ danger _mumble mumble._ '

At that point, she gave up all pretence and tiptoed closer to the door to listen.

'Indeed there is,' she heard Thor say. 'But the threat is no less if she remains here. If we fail, nowhere will be safe.'

'She doesn't have to be the one out there positioning the things,' insisted Erik. 'She's not like one of your warrior friends.'

Jane felt a rush of irritation. She knew damn well that she wasn't, but she was pretty confident that Thor's friends wouldn't be able to repair her equipment if it malfunctioned at a crucial moment.

'That is true,' said Thor. Jane narrowed her eyes slightly. 'My warriors will step in or out of battle at my command. However I do not believe I have the authority to give such orders here.'

Jane's lip twitched. From where she stood she could practically hear Erik's frown, well knowing his looks of disapproval by now.

'Do you think I'm joking?' demanded Erik.

'Forgive me, no, but neither am I,' said Thor. 'I have precious few allies in this fight. I neither ask nor expect any of you to fight, but if you are willing then all the Nine Realms may soon thank you.'

'And what if something happened to her?'

After that there was a long pause before Thor replied. 'What, then, do you propose as my alternative?'

From her spot behind the door, Jane folded her arms. That sounded far too much like Thor was actually listening to Erik.

'I can take her work. I'm old enough that if something happens to me then nothing will be lost.'

'Jane will not-'

'She might if you asked her,' Erik interrupted. 'Not a command, a request, for her safety.'

'You truly believe that?'

'Please will you try? Neither of us wants to lose her, not over this. The danger is too great, we don't need to risk all of our lives.'

Another long pause from Thor. 'I will speak with her before we leave,' he said at last.

Jane was on the verge of pushing down the door and telling him to damn well speak with her now and he was getting dumped before this even went anywhere, when behind her she heard her equipment begin to beep.

She jumped.

Right... the Convergence and the end of the world. The thing they were talking about. The thing she needed to focus on. She could be angry at Thor and Erik later. Now, she had a universe to help save.

Whether her mentor and her not-boyfriend thought they needed her help or not.

She hurried back to her work and the discussion from the other room faded into mumbling once more.

Thor didn't appear straight away. For the next ten minutes or so she was tense, waiting on an irritating conversation that would only have a bad outcome. It didn't matter that she would win the argument. That Thor would even ask her, when he wouldn't anyone else, meant that already there was some irreparable gulf of understanding between them.

When he didn't come and find her, she settled back into her work. Anger at men who thought they knew better had fuelled a good forty percent of her doctorate and sixty-five percent of her career since then. It was actually almost pleasantly familiar to work with a background haze of annoyance and playing arguments out in her imagination. It took the edge off the end of the world and made her work come naturally.

Darcy and Ian returned with the extra bits of equipment she'd needed.

'Woah, do I even want to know?' said Darcy, presumably reading something from her posture.

'Busy working,' said Jane without looking up.

'Fine, fine, I'm gonna go make us some food,' said Darcy.

Jane sighed to herself and looked up to shoot an awkward smile at Darcy. 'Yeah, thanks, sorry, hell of a day,' she said.

'It's about to get better,' said Darcy. 'But on the plus side, 'saving the world' will look way better on my resume than 'making sure my scientist eats'.' The slight shaking of her hands belied her casual tone.

'Hey, you know you don't have to do this, right?' said Jane. If anything happened to Darcy because of her stupid plan... she couldn't even think about it.

Darcy snorted. 'Sure I do,' she said. 'It's my planet too. Although if we make it out of this alive, you'd better make this a paid internship.'

Jane managed a laugh before diving back into her work.

It wasn't until t-minus one hour, when she'd sat back to watch some code compiling, that Thor appeared. She'd eaten some microwaved pizza that Darcy had shoved under her nose, but then kicked the interns out so she could focus. Ordinarily she'd've loved to explain a project like this: to translate her work into a reality that Darcy understood made her all the more appreciative of physics in general. Darcy had a way of looking at things differently, too. That day, though, she knew exactly what she was doing and she needed it to just _work_.

Now she was waiting, and Thor slipped through the door after only a few minutes of peace. The timing was so good she suspected he'd been checking up on her, but she tended not to notice things like other people when she was that engrossed. There was half a cup of coffee beside her that she remembered neither receiving nor drinking any of, and it was possible Thor had delivered that.

'Is now a convenient moment for us to speak?' he asked quietly.

'Sure, I guess,' said Jane reluctantly. Better to have it out here and now than later when they were more pressed for time.

Thor joined her at the table, sitting down next to her and turning to face her very earnestly. 'Jane, I owe you an apology.'

She blinked. 'What?'

'Earlier... I ended up speaking of you when you were not present,' he said. 'You are my host and my... friend, and I should not have been so rude. I hope you can forgive me.'

Jane stared at him. Over the past hour, she'd planned this conversation out a dozen different times in her head. Not once had it started like this.

'Um. OK.'

'There is a further matter,' he said, apparently taking her 'OK' for her forgiveness instead of her confusion.

She leaned back and folded her arms, waiting.

'Your work nears completion?'

She nodded.

'Then soon we will leave for Greenwich.' He hesitated for a second. 'You are aware of the risks that we face?'

'Yes I think I am,' she said shortly. 'I'm the one who saw it, remember?'

He nodded solemnly. 'Of course,' he said. 'And you know there is no obligation upon you to go to Greenwich? If you wished to remain here instead there would be no shame to be had.'

'I'd say there definitely is an obligation,' she said. 'This is _my_ work to try and stop an apocalypse I saw right in front of my face. There's no way I'm just going to sit back. What if something goes wrong? What if you get hurt? Or anyone else gets hurt? I'm not staying away.'

Thor smiled. 'Then I can only wish that we are blessed with as much luck as you have courage,' he said.

'Wait... what?' She felt her face go pink under his proud gaze and mentally cursed. This was not the time for blushing.

Thor began to get to his feet. 'Perhaps you will excuse me,' he said. 'I should like to speak with Darcy and Ian to ensure they are as set in their paths as you are in yours.'

Jane grabbed his arm and pulled him down back into the chair.

'Um, no, you're not excused,' she said. 'Is that it?'

He stared at her. 'Jane, I'm not certain-'

'Isn't there more to that speech? Like, I was expecting you to try and talk me out of it properly or something.'

'Would you like me to?'

'No!'

'Then...?' He stared at her.

She guessed she must sound like she'd lost it.

Then suddenly she saw a flash of understanding in his eyes, followed by embarrassment. 'You overheard?' he asked. She nodded, and Thor ran a hand through his hair. 'My most sincere and continued apologies,' he said.

'No, it's fine,' said Jane, wondering if maybe it actually was. 'I was just... I was expecting something different.'

He gave her a rueful smile. 'Jane, believe me, I should like nothing more than to transport the pair of us to somewhere safe, to ignore the Convergence and to live at peace. But my life was not destined to be peaceful and I think neither was yours. You have told me that you understand the danger and you wish to fight regardless, and for me to further question that would not be fair to you. I would ask no more of Sif or the Warriors Three, after all.'

'Yeah, well, I'm not exactly one of them,' said Jane, before realising she was parroting Erik from earlier when Thor grinned.

'Indeed not,' he said. 'But it is a foolish man who does not recognise the strength of his allies just because that strength comes not from wielding a sword. I do not wish for you to risk your life, but the Nine Realms are yours to help protect as much as they are mine.'

Jane shifted in her seat, suddenly feeling overwhelmed with her own responsibility. 'Erik's not going to be pleased with you,' she told him at last, when no other words would come.

Thor shrugged. 'I said I would speak with you and I have done so. If you had seemed uncertain or unaware of the danger, or as if you wished me to dissuade you, I might have spoken differently. However, you walk into this battle with your eyes open and for me to fight against that is both purposeless and disrespectful.'

Under his direct gaze, Jane fidgeted slightly. She wished she felt half as brave or certain as he seemed to think she was.

'It'd almost be easier if you did,' she admitted. 'Then I could argue with you and not...'

'Think about that which will follow?'

She nodded, glancing down at her computer and staring at the flickering screen as it looped through her hastily-written algorithm.

'SHIELD sent me away during New York, you know,' she said after a moment.

'I do,' he said. 'They told me. In truth I was relieved.'

Her head shot up again and she stared him down, which at least earned her an apologetic look.

'I do not say that I think their actions were correct, merely that I felt relief, however selfish.' He seemed to almost squirm under her gaze. 'That Loki was making the fight personal gave me much concern, but I can only apologise that I let that override my thoughts of how you would feel.'

Jane let out a short laugh and shook her head. 'God, I can't figure out at all what to expect from you,' she said. 'I guess I really was expecting you to try and send me away or something.'

He looked as though he was trying to suppress a smile. 'Once, when I was very young, I tried to protect Lady Sif and nearly got the pair of us killed. I learned that day that however much I may wish to keep my friends safe, that choice is not always mine to make.'

'Oh... fine,' muttered Jane. 'Erik is still in trouble though.'

'He wishes to protect you,' said Thor. 'All fathers – whether by blood or adoption – do, in their own oft-clumsy way.'

Jane raised her eyebrow. 'Don't even try and pull that good-intentions wisdom crap with me,' she said. 'If your dad or any of your friends got all protective over you, you'd lose your mind and fly out the window or something.'

Thor laughed. 'It has happened, although not for many years, and you are correct in your estimation of my reaction. Perhaps it is too easy to dispense advice from outside the situation.'

She found herself giggling despite her nerves. Then in front of her, her laptop beeped and she jumped through her skin.

'Jesus,' she muttered, taking a couple of breaths to slow her suddenly jumping heart.

'Is it ready?' he asked.

'Nearly. A few more minutes. Just gotta transfer...' Her fingers were shaking as she typed a few commands and Thor placidly watched her. 'God, how are you so calm?'

'You think me calm?' he said. She glanced over to see him raising an eyebrow. He still _looked_ relaxed and she raised one right back. He gave a slight smile, but leaned forward and suddenly she thought maybe she could see something worried in his eyes. 'There is... there is much I fear,' he admitted. 'And in truth I do not know which thought is worse: that I might have gone into this battle alone, or that you or your friends may be injured helping me. Even now I question myself: should we have stayed on Asgard with my father's armies? Should we have contacted SHIELD?' He sighed and rubbed a hand across his face. 'I am used to many lives depending on my actions, but I failed to protect my mother, I failed to stop Malekith escaping, and I failed even to save my brother. Have I misjudged this too?'

'You didn't fail anything,' said Jane, in a way she hoped was comforting, but found herself floundering. There was really nothing she could say in the face of his too-recent loss, and instead she reached across and grabbed his hand.

He glanced at her with a slightly regretful look in his eyes. 'My apologies once more, Jane,' he said. 'This cannot be reassuring you. I wish I could tell you I was certain of this path, but you deserve my honesty.'

She smiled and shrugged, then nudged his arm with her own. 'I don't know, it's kinda good to know you're not one-hundred-percent super-perfect super-stoic superhero,' she said. 'Sorta makes me feel like I'm doing OK.'

He smiled back. 'That I am not,' he said. 'And to me you are doing most wonderfully.'

He was looking at her in a way that made her feel very warm and flustered. Before she could think of a response, the transfer completed, and she hurriedly began to disconnect her wires before finding herself staring down at a pile of modified gravometric spikes and the controller.

'Well,' she said. 'Here we go then. Saving the Nine Realms.'

'I certainly hope so,' said Thor. 'You and I, though, I have to believe we can do it.'

'Me and you and Darcy and Erik and Ian,' said Jane reasonably. 'I really doubt your little speech about staying home if they want is gonna work on them either. Plus physics, which is really the most reliable member of the damn team.'

Thor gave a gentle laugh as he helped her gather up the spikes. 'If physics is on our side then obviously we will win. Fight well, Jane.'

She swallowed and nodded. 'You too.' She extended her free hand to him, and he took it.

'For the Nine Realms,' he said solemnly, and they walked out of the door to meet their fate.


End file.
